


A beating heart

by Eloqxence



Category: Les Misérables (2012), Les Misérables - All Media Types, Les Misérables - Victor Hugo
Genre: Alternate Universe - Superheroes, Character Death, Other, Rip Marius his parents, jehan has two mothers because I said so, sort off hallucinations I guess?, undeveloped powers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-14
Updated: 2017-08-14
Packaged: 2018-12-15 09:25:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11803182
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eloqxence/pseuds/Eloqxence
Summary: Superpowers aren’t unheard of, it’s very common to have a child who can fly these days. Marius is a young boy living in a world where much is expected of you once you show clear signs of not being normal, however Marius ends up in a car accident and his parents pass away. While staying at his grandfathers place he soon starts noticing that he is seeing things that aren’t there. When his grandfather finds out it doesn’t take long for them to discover that Marius has the ability to alter another’s reality. Marius is forced to keep his powers in control instead of expanding it however, Marius his friend Jehan decides to attempt to teach him how to be stronger.





	A beating heart

**Author's Note:**

> wow! Once again a huge thanks to my editor/proofreader/best friend Pedro! Honestly where would I be without her? 
> 
> Okay so this is a backstory to the super hero AU that I'm still intenting to write one day. I decided to post Marius his backstory first because well honestly I got a sudden burst of creativity at 2 AM and then this happens

Marius didn't remember much of his parents their death or the accident that took their lives. He just remembers sitting in a car with them. They were there. They were talking and laughing. They were alive. Next thing he knows he has fallen asleep and when he wakes he finds himself in a hospital bed, they were gone. The room was quiet aside from the monitor that displayed his heartbeat. The beeping felt like betrayal; it felt like a clear sign of "I'm still here and they are gone. I'm alive and they are dead." During his stay in the hospital many doctors came, testing him to see if he was ready to leave. He remembers begging them to take him to his parents, he remembers the pain in his leg and every night the same exruciating sound that told him with every soft beep "You are alive and they are gone, they are dead and you will never know what they thought or what they said to you because you were asleep." His grandfather came in to visit often. He tried to talk to him about the accident, he tried asking what he remembered. Marius never answered those questions, he would simply shrug and mutter a "I'm tired grandpa... sorry." and that would be the end of it. 

He didn't remember how long he stayed there, he had stopped counting the days after the third week but it could have been months. His granddad came to pick him up that day but before he did, Marius was sent to a therapists who specialized in young children who had dealt with great trauma. It confused him. He had been sleeping when the accident happened, yet he was going to these sessions a lot. His grandfather thought it was useless, had insisted that talking about your feelings wasn't going to help him get through what was happening. Marius didn't believe it either at first, but the more often he sat with the kind woman who called herself Fantine and the more often he talked with her, he felt a little more relieved. He was sitting in his bed with a small teddy bear he had been given by one of the doctors when his grandfather finally walked in.

"Are you ready, Marius? It's time to go home." he said.

Marius nodded, although he was confused. His parents were dead, how could he return home? Would he live on his own now? But he was 6! How could he possibly cook dinner for himself if his mother never taught him. He followed his grandfather out and waved shyly at some of the doctors who had treated him. His grandfather took him down the many stairs and finally Marius discovered he had been staying pretty high up in the hospital. There had been a bed in the room that was near the window, but it was occupied by a young girl. She never spoke and screamed a lot when the doctors came to pick her up. She had terrified Marius atleast a little and so he stayed away from the window and the beds close to it. After he had finally made it all the way down, he followed his grandfather through the parking lot an over to his small car. Marius froze slightly but didn't want to bother his grandfather. He took a few deep breaths and quickly got in. A feeling of dread and panic took over him and he didn't say a single word the whole ride home. He stayed as wide awake as he could and got out as soon as possible when they arrived at his grandfathers house. 

"You'll be staying with me from now on, Marius. I know it'll be a lot different, and I know it'll take time to adjust but I'll send you to the best school and I'll make sure this will feel like a home to you." His grandfather said softly to him. He wrapped his arms around him and held him gently. Marius didn't speak, just carefully wrapped his arms around him and nodded. They walked into the big house together, Marius held onto his grandfather's hand as tightly as he could. The place was a lot bigger than he was used to, the walls were filled with old looking paintings and statues of long gone people. He glanced into a room and froze as he saw his parents calmly sipping tea at the table. He wanted to walk over but he got pulled away. "That's the kitchen, you won't spend much time there. We have cooks and maids here." 

His parents waved at him and he waved back before getting dragged into another room. The young girl from the hospital was playing on the floor, she let out a loud scream when he and his grandfather entered the room and Marius flinched. His grandfather told him all about the room, about how it would become his bedroom and completely ignored the screaming and crying girl.

"MOMMY!! MOMMY!! I WANT TO GO HOME!!" She said inbetween sobs. The screaming made his head hurt but before he could comment on it he went into the next room. It was smaller and there was a bathtub and shower, and there was a young lady sitting in the corner of it. When Marius walked closer to inspect it the woman shot up, she spoke in a foreign language and twisted her body into angels she physically wasn't supposed to be able to. Marius got startled and started crying, he quickly ran out of the bathroom. His grandfather attempted to follow him but since Marius hadn't spent years smoking cigarettes his lungs and legs managed to get him further than him. He made it into the garden where he found a young boy talking to the flowers. Marius let out a sob and dropped to his knees.

"Hey? Are you okay?" The young boy walked over to him and sat opposite of him. He didn't make a move to touch him, just gave him a worrying look.

"I-I'm scared!" Marius cried out. He wasn't sure whether he was imagining the boy as well, but the thought of a kinder fragment of his imagination helped a little.

"Why? Is it the big house?" 

"Y-Yes! I-It's filled with strange people! T-They scare me!" He sobbed and the little boy put a hand on his shoulder.

"The staff is very nice! My mommies work there! They are cooks and I get to come and play in mister's backyard! You don't have to be afraid of the house." 

"I-I don't? B-But what about the foreign woman? S-She twists her body a-and it scares me..." Marius wiped a few tears away and looked up at the boy. He seemed confused and a little puzzled but then he smiled brightly.

"The old mister never hires creepy people! I'm sure she is very nice, I never met her before though." He answered.

"O-Oh... O-Okay... Thank you uh...?" 

"Oh! The name is Jean Prouvaire!" The small boy extended his hand for Marius to shake it. He hestitated a little but grabbed it either way.

"I'm Marius... Marius Pontmercy. The old mister is my grandpa." He said.

"He is? I didn't know he had one! Oh wait look! There are my mommies!" 

Marius turned around and saw his grandfather and two women running over to them.

"Marius! Oh I'm so glad to see you safely with Jean." His grandfather stopped running and panted heavily. 

"He's a fast one, isn't he?" One of the women asked with a smile. She looked a little like the foreign woman sitting in the bathtub, only prettier and she had darker skin. Her eyes weren't milky white either; they were a nice brown shade, much like Jean's.

"Why did you run?" His grandfather asked.

"I was scared..." Marius mumbled.

"Yeah! But we talked and now he isn't scared anymore!" Jean said.

"Well, that's very nice of you Jean! You know, Marius is going to live here so now you'll finally have a friend to play with." One of the women said. She had picked Jean up and now Marius could tell they looked a lot alike, they both had darker skin and very curly hair. Jean’s hair was tied up, but the woman had it loose. Marius had always been told that two women and two men couldn't get children together, but Jean looked an incredible lot like both of his mothers so perhaps his parents had been mistaken. He had learned at a young age that that was possible, like the time his mother was convinced she knew what plants were in their backyard but Marius insisted she was mistaken. His grandfather had taught him a lot about plants, so he was sure he was right. They had called him and asked him who was right. He had said it was Marius and his mother had laughed and called him a clever boy. He smiled at the thought but then sadness filled his heart again, his mother was gone and now wasn't the time to be happy.

"Really? I always wanted a friend to play with!" Jean said excitedly.

"Me too." Marius said softly.

"It's been a long day, let's get you some dinner and then you'll go to bed." His grandfather said.

"Okay... Bye Jean, see you tomorrow?" 

"Of course! Bye mister! Bye Marius!" Jean said.

Marius followed his grandfather into the house and held his hand tightly again. When they passed the kitchen to get dinner his parents were gone. They ate in front of the TV that night, which he had never done before, but his grandfather had insisted it would be okay for this once. When dinner was finished his grandfather took him into his new room. His old bed was there now and the small girl was gone. He crawled into his bed and his grandfather tucked him in. Shortly after he left, someone put a hand on Marius his shoulder. He shot up and looked around only to find his parents in the room again.

"Don't be scared sweetie, it's just me." His mother whispered. She placed her hand on his cheek which felt warm, like the hand of a living person should. She leant closer and kissed his forehead. 

"You were in the hospital for so long, we didn't even have the time to see you." His dad said to him with a smile.

"Y-You two died...?" Marius said with a shaking voice as he trembled and pulled the covers closer.

"We didn't. It's just a lie sweetie... They want to take you away from us. My dad always found us bad parents." His mother stroked his cheek with her thumb and his dad nodded.

"But we're here now, and we aren't leaving our little boy behind." 

Marius laid down and fell asleep with the soothing thought that his parents would be here from now on.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~

Marius is woken up by Jean the next morning. The young boy has his long hair braided today. It's complicated and Marius had never seen it before, it's probably because his hair isn't long enough to be braided and his mother never wore hers in braids either.

"Morning! My mommies asked me to bring you this." He held up a plate with toast and eggs.

"That looks very yummy, thank you Jean." Marius carefully grabs the plate and starts eating. He quietly pushed a piece of the toast to Jean and smiled brightly when he takes it and eats it. 

"My mommies talked to the old mister, he doesn't know of any foreign woman who twists her body." Jean said before shoving his mouth full with toast.

"Oh..." Marius shrugs and looks around for his parents, but they are gone and he is left alone with Jean.

"I dreamed I saw my parents.." He feels a little silly for telling Jean, especially because he doesn't know him that well but he is afraid to tell anyone else.

"I once dreamed my mommies brought me to bed when I was staying with my aunty for a whole month." Jean responds. Marius smiles, it feels good to know he isn't being weird for missing his parents and dreaming of them.

"Do you know the old mister takes care of his own garden?" Jean suddenly asks. He sits up and a bright smile appears on his face. Marius nods. Of course he knows, he tended the garden with his grandfather before. He had been only 5 and he had destroyed an entire bed of roses. His grandfather had scolded him but then proceeded to teach him how to take good care of the plants in the backyard. He had told him they were all alive and that they needed to be taken good care of. Marius had felt very bad for pulling out the flowers but his grandfather had assured him that many people did it and it would be okay. They had taken the flowers inside and had hung them upside down in a dark closet, the then dried up flowers had been given to Marius a month later and they had been in his room for some time.

"I often come across him there! He teaches me about the flowers, he says I'm very smart for an 8 yeard old! He said I have a real talent for taking care of flowers." Jean says proudly.

"I'm banned from his roses." Marius responds sheepishly. Jean laughs and the two finish their breakfast. They take it downstairs but as Marius walks towards the kitchen door, he suddenly bumps directly into a wall. He looks around confused and the door is gone. He had been so sure of how it had been there just a few seconds ago, but now a solid white wall has replaced it.

"The kitchen is this way, silly!" Jean smiles at him and Marius quietly follows.

~~~~~~

He has been living with his grandfather for some months now, he has grown to really love the place. He likes the people that work there and he likes spending time with Jean, who has changed to being called Jehan these days. Often Marius finds strange people sitting in places they shouldn't be, he finds doors that don't exist and so Marius stopped talking to people that weren't Jehan and his mothers or his grandfather. He doesn't walk into rooms anymore without his grandfather or Jehan at his side, Jehan easily believed that he is just bad sighted but his grandfather looks at him with mild concern whenever he walks face first into a wall. Marius can't blame him, it's probably a silly sight.

He is sitting out in the backyard on a small bench with Jehan, he watches him grow flowers with the tip of his finger. They had recently discovered Jehan possesed special powers. His mothers had been so proud and Marius's grandfather had offered him a small part of the backyard to practice in. The flowers that were growing started off small, at first it was nothing more than grass and tiny bits of green which revealed to become a flower when taken proper care of. However, nowadays Jehan grew roses and orchids as natural as it would be to breathe. Marius enjoyed watching him grow live at the tips of his fingers, he enjoyed watching him create beatiful things and he loved seeing the little boy filled with joy whenever a new flower grew.

"Marius! Look! I grew a buttercup!" Jehan said suddenly.

"Really?" Marius got off the bench and crouched down beside Jehan. He looked at the little yellow flower and reached out to touch it. Jehan grabbed his hand and shook his head.

"Careful, my mommy thaught me they are poisonous! they will make you very sick and they can make your tummy hurt." 

"If it's poisonous why would you grow it?!" Marius asked angrily. He didn't understand why Jehan would use his powers to grow something that could potentially harm someone.

"Everything grows with a reason Marius! Just like the nettle, there is more to the plant than it's poison. Nettles can be used in soup, buttercups can be used in medicine. Just because something can harm you doesn't mean it has to! It doesn't mean it's bad either." Jehan gave him a kind smile and Marius felt perplexed. Sometimes the wiseness of Jehan surprised him, especially when talking about things like these. It was obvious that Jehan was taught that everything happened for a reason, Marius was taught that everything grew for a reason too. He wanted to tell him how amazed he was by his knowledge, but he didn't say any of it. Instead he said:

"You're silly, Jehan. I like that." Marius smiled and Jehan hugged him gently.

"Let's go! It's almost dinner time and my mommies promised I could sit with you instead of the staff tonight." 

"Alright!" 

The two small boys went inside and went to the dining room, however, as they were about to enter Marius froze. There she was again, the strange foreign woman. She crawled towards him on her arms and legs and gently cupped his face.

"Marius, mi niño." She spoke softly.

"I-I... what?" Marius trembled as she moved her hands through his hair. She twisted her arm and pulled hard on his hair, banging his head against the wall.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" Marius cried out.

"M-Marius..?" Jehan asked, he seemed about as afraid as Marius felt. He quickly ran off to get his mothers and Marius his grandfather. "MOMMY!!! OLD MISTER!!" he called out.

"P-Please let go of me ma'am.." Marius whimpered as she pulled on his hair again.

"Es tu culpa, tu propria tonta culpa." 

"I-I don't understand what you're saying." He cried out. He heard his grandfather and Jehan his mothers running over and the woman dissapeared, Marius fell to the floor and cried loudly. His head was throbbing and he felt like he was going to vomit. His grandfather came around the corner and quickly picked him up.

"Marius! What happened? Jehan said you suddenly banged your head against the wall." He asked worriedly.

"It hurts.." He whined. His grandfather gently grabbed his hand and inspected his head for bruises.

"Let's put some ice on that... It seems like it'll bruise pretty badly." 

He carried him away and walked into the kitchen. He found the strange woman sitting there in a chair but she didn't speak this time, only glared as his grandfather sat him down on a chair directly next to her. Marius immediatly broke down crying again and his grandfather petted his head.

"It's going to be okay, want to tell me what happened?" 

Marius looked at the woman next to him, but she simply shook her head at him. Marius immediatly looked away. He could still feel her milky white eyes piercing in his back. "I-I fell..." He lied.

"That's not what Jehan told me... Jehan told me you banged your head against the wall on your own. Why are you lying to me?" 

A cold hand grabbed Marius by the shoulder, he froze up again and felt the hand move to his mouth. it covered his mouth and nose and he started gasping for air.

"Marius?! What's going on? Can you breath?" 

Marius sobbed loudly as he gasped for air, he could feel it filling his lungs and yet the hand was there. It laid tightly on his mouth and nose, trying to prevent him from breathing. He nodded yes and the hand held on tighter.

"I-I f-fell and b-banged my head a-against the wall." Marius said softly. "It's the truth." He added when he saw the skeptical look on his grandfather his face.

"Alright... I believe you..." He said softly.

The hand pulled away, it rested on his shoulders for a bit before it dragged it's nails gently over his back, making Marius shiver again. His grandfather grabbed a cooling pad and wrapped it in a towel before putting it on his forehead. He flinched slightly at the touch, his forehead was still throbbing and it made him feel terrible. He was causing his family so much trouble, this wasn't the first time one of his hallucinations caused him trouble. A week ago he had an elaborate conversation with someone who he thought was one of the people working for his grandfather only to be found by someone and ask him who he was talking too.

"I think we might have to take you to a doctor, Marius." His grandfather said softly.

"What? Why!" Marius asked in a scared tone.

"You keep walking into walls, you are often found talking to no one... I'm worried about you." He said

"There is nothing wrong with me!" Marius said angrily. "I am not going to the doctors!" 

"Marius please, let's not argue now." He said.

"No! I don't want to go! I'm okay!" 

"The doctors can help you." 

Marius got out of the room and heard a hissing voice behind him say:

"Larga te!" 

He didn't hestitate and ran away as far as he could. He made it out of the house through the frontdoor and ran over the street. He had no idea where he was running off to and he could hear the voices of the adults shouting after him to stop. He remembered the place where the funeral for his parents had been held. He hadn't attended it because he was still hospitalised, but he remembered it was close from the place where he was at this moment. He took a left turn and found the cemetery right ahead of him. He walked slowly and panted. How did cemeteries work? Were people buried on alphabetic order? He realised he had only ever been here with his grandfather and the cemetery was pretty huge. He slowly made his way through the cemetery, walking past every headstone to find the one that belonged to his parents. He found it in the far back of the cemetery, there were wilted flowers and he immediatly thought of Jehan and how he could bring the flowers back to life. He sat down in front of it and touched the headstone. 

"I miss you two... you won't even visit at night anymore..." Marius whispered.

"It's okay sweetheart, we're here now." His mother placed a hand on his back and pulled him closer, she took him into her arms and Marius rested his head on her chest. He stayed silent but the familiar and comforting sound of a heartbeat wasn't there.

"Mum... why can't I hear your-" 

"It's going to be okay." She cut him off.

He knew he was making this up, no matter how real it all felt. He felt tears welling up in his eyes and he laid down on the floor, his parents sat down next to him and stroked his hair. 

"It's not fair... I miss you two so much b-but grandpa won't talk to me... I only have Jehan b-but ever since his powers started showing he has less time to t-talk to me.." He sobbed.

"I know sweetheart, it's tough..." His dad whispered.

"Just stay with us, we'll keep you safe, okay?" His mother whispered

Marius nodded and curled up towards his mother. It may have all been a lie, but sometimes lies are just more beautiful. Sometimes we lie to ourselves to ensure we feel better about ourselves, we lie to others to keep them happy so why couldn't Marius knowingly lie to himself? He didn't see a problem with it, who was he hurting besides himself? He yawned and felt himself drifting off to sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~

The moment he woke up he was in his own room, his grandfather and some of the adults who worked there were standing in his bedroom. The door opened and a doctor entered the room. "Marius, hello. My name is Valjean, you can just call me Jean if you want." He walked closer and smiled. "I'm here to take a look at you because your family is very worried about you." 

"T-There is nothing wrong with me!" He protested.

"I believe you, that's why we have to take a look though. To prove nothing is wrong with you." Valjean gave him a kind smile and Marius nodded. His grandfather and the other adults left the room and Valjean sat down on a chair next to him.

"Usually I would examine you, see if there is anything wrong with you. However, I heard from your friend Jehan what you've been experiencing and I'm starting to think that perhaps you are just like him." Valjean explained.

"What do you mean?" Marius asked

"I think you have a very strong power, Marius. I think you have the ability to fabricate realities, in a way I think you have the ability to create things that aren't truly there." 

"Like the foreign lady!" Marius said with wide eyes.

"Yes, like the foreign lady. Now, Marius. I want you to tell me when you started experiencing these things, I want you to tell me how often you see them and if there are any clear things that activate your powers."

"Uhm... It started when I lost my parents... No, maybe before that as well... uhm, I remember seeing a strange man in my bedroom once but... I'm not sure? Maybe a little before the passing of my parents... I uh... I see it almost every night? Especially if I'm alone or in a room I haven't been in before..." 

"I see... Can you try to show me what the foreign lady looks like?" 

"Uhm... She has long bl-" 

"No, not tell. Show me, please?" 

Marius nodded quietly and closed his eyes in an attempt to picture her. He had never activated his powers on purpose before so he didn't exactly know what to do. He tried his very best to picture the woman, her weirdly bended body and her milky eyes. He tried to picture the weird rags she always wore and her hoarse voice that spoke to him in an unknown language.

"Oh my, she isn't a very nice sight.. Is she?" Valjean suddenly said.

Marius opened his eyes and there the woman was again, she was crawling towards the bed and towards Valjean as she hissed softly. 

"No... she sits and watches me shower a lot... that's where I first saw her as well... The bathroom." Marius said softly. He focused on getting her to dissapear but she refused.

"Well, I think I know enough Marius. I'll go and talk to your grandfather about this now." Valjean got up and walked away, leaving Marius behind to think about what had happened.

He glanced around the room to find the woman but she had dissapeared now, probably because he wasn't paying attention to her anymore. He felt a sense of calm knowing everything he saw could be stopped, knowing everything wasn't a figment of his own imagination but rather a sign of his own strength gave him a little bit of comfort. He knew he could talk with Jehan about this, he could probably help him practice as well.

"Marius..." His grandfather walked in.

"Grandpa!" Marius smiled at him. "I told you I was normal!" 

"Yes... Yes you told me. I have decided to take you out of public school, you'll be homeschooled from now on. We will help you learn how to control your power but we will not make it stronger." 

"What? Why not?" 

"The stronger you become the more people will notice of your powers, I do not want people using your ability to their own satisfaction. Do you understand me?" 

"Y-Yes..." 

"Alright, we'll talk tomorrow. You need your rest. I have decied to fire some of the staff as well, the less people who know the better.”

“Alright?” Marius answered slightly confused. He didn’t understand why his power should be kept a secret, they did the same with Elsa in Frozen and that only resulted into trouble didn’t it? But then again his grandfather was a smart a man, he probably knew best.

“Goodnight Marius." 

"Night, grandpa."

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked the story, I tried my best on this and I hope it kinda makes sense? The rest of the amis will eventually make an appearance in this I promise 
> 
> if you want to hear more about the super hero AU or scream with me about how Marius deserves love and happiness even tho he isn't going to be getting any from me then message me on tumblr! it's @eloquent-apollo


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